County of Eberstein

State of the Holy Roman Empire (1085–1660)

County of Eberstein

Grafschaft Eberstein

1085–1660

Coat of arms

Status

County

Capital

Alt Eberstein^a
Neu Eberstein^b
48°44.97′N 8°20.6′E / 48.74950°N 8.3433°E / 48.74950; 8.3433

Historical era

Middle Ages

• Established

1085

• Sold land to Baden

1387

• Comital line extinct,
to Speyer and
Württemberg

1660

Preceded by

Succeeded by

Ufgau

Margraviate of Baden
Bishopric of Speyer
Duchy of Württemberg

a: Alt Eberstein is in Ebersteinburg, now an outlying district of Baden-Baden.
b: Neu Eberstein is now known as Schloss Eberstein, near Gernsbach.

The County of Eberstein was a territory within the Holy Roman Empire, situated in the southwest of modern Germany. From 1085 up into the 13th century, the Counts of Eberstein lived in the castle known today as Alt Eberstein which lies on a mountain top between the valleys of the rivers Murg and Oos (in Ebersteinburg, now an outlying district of Baden-Baden). They then moved to Neu Eberstein, today known as Schloss Eberstein, near Gernsbach.

From 1085, the counts were Vögte of Reichenbach Priory.

After the financial ruin of Wolf von Eberstein in 1387, half of the family possessions had to be sold to the Margraves of Baden. When the last male member of the family died in 1660, the remaining possessions were taken over by the bishopric of Speyer and by the duchy of Württemberg.

Map of the County of Eberstein in 1283
The ruins of Alt Eberstein castle
Schloss Eberstein near Gernsbach
The original coat of arms of the Counts of Eberstein, dated 1450–80, from the Scheibler'sches Wappenbuch

The Counts of Eberstein from south-west Germany should not be confused with the Franconian lords of the same name with their ancestral home at Eberstein Castle near Hilders. Another medieval comital family were the counts of Everstein (sometimes also called Eberstein) from Lower Saxony with their ancestral home Everstein on the Burgberg (ridge).